Switch actuating mechanism for a toy boat



Oct. 12, 1965 N. HAGEAL 3,211,879

SWITCH ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR A TOY BOAT Filed July 9, 1963 'TTE 1- III! Position FIG. '3- I E113 2- l6 l5 l9 .ZZTI- INVENTOR. NEAL HAGEAL y5' I H, I j

Alforney United States Patent Office 3,211,879 Patented Oct. 12, 19653,211,879 SWITCH ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR A TOY BOAT Neal Hageal, 1105Fair Oaks Place, New Kensington, Pa. Filed July 9, 1963, Ser. No.293,808 1 Claim. (Cl. 200-172) This invention relates to boats and, inparticular, to an on-and-olf switch for controlling the operation of abattery-powered motor in a toy boat.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple, inexpensive switchwhich may be easily operated manually both when the boat is lying atrest and when it is in motion.

According to the invention, I make use of the dummy steering wheel andpost, usually provided in toy boats, by a special mounting thereof, toconstitute it a switch in the circuit including the battery and themotor.

A preferred embodiment is shown in the accompanying drawings in whichFIG. 1 is a partial plan view;

FIG. 2 is a partial section along the plane of line II-II of FIG. 1 withparts in elevation;

FIG. 3 is a section along the plane of line III-III of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a partial section along the plane of line IV-IV of FIG. 2.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, a boat hull 10 has a cockpit 11and an instrument panel 12 extending forwardly thereof. A steering Wheel13 is mounted on a post 14. The lower end of the post, which comprises ashaft 20, is journaled in a bearing 15 upstanding from the bottom of theboat below panel 12, which permits tilting movement of the post in avertical plane. The upper end of the post projects upwardly of the panel12 through a slot therein.

A contact member 16 is mounted on an arm 17 at the lower end of post 14so that, on tilting movement of the latter, member 16 will engage andbridge spaced fixed contact members 18, one on each side thereof. Bymaking suitable connections to members 17 in an obvious manner, theswitch alforded by post 14 and contact members 16 and 18 may be causedto control a battery-powered motor (not shown) suitably mounted in or onthe boat. Post 14 is rotatably held in bearing 15 by a notched bracket19 integral with panel 12. As is conventional, the boat hull is moldedin one piece and the panel and deck in another, the two pieces beingjoined in any suitable manner.

It will be evident that tilting of the steering post 14 to effectopening or closing of the switch may be readily effected whether theboat is moving or at rest.

I claim:

In a toy boat, a hull and an instrument panel fitted thereon, thecombination therewith of a switch actuating mechanism comprising abearing upstanding in said hull, a shaft journaled horizontally in saidbearing abeam of the hull, a bracket depending from said panel holdingsaid shaft in said bearing, said panel having a slot therein and a postcarried by said shaft and extending upwardly through said slot.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,426,193 8/22Holmgren 200--6 2,29 8,802 10/42 Meyerhoefer 2006 3,040,828 6/62 Ulinski2006 3,046,697 7/62 Pullen 4693 BERNARD A. GILHEANY, Primary Examiner.

ROBERT K. SCHAEFER, Examiner.

